1. Field of Invention
The field of the present invention relates in general to Wi-Fi wireless access points (WAP) for home networks.
2. Description of the Related Art
Home networks are increasingly set up and serviced using a device called a Wireless Access Point (WAP). The WAP may include a router. The WAP couples all the devices of the home network, e.g. computers, printers, televisions to one another and to the Cable or Subscriber Line through which Internet, video, and television is delivered to the home. Most WAPs implement the IEEE 802.11 standard which is a contention based standard for handling communications among multiple competing devices for a shared wireless communication medium. The WAP controls access to the shared communication medium using a multiple access methodology identified as Collision Sense Multiple Access (CSMA). CSMA is a distributed random access methodology first introduced for home wired networks such as Ethernet for sharing a single communication medium, by having a contending communication link back off and retry access to the line if a collision is detected, i.e. if the line is in use. Collisions however are not easily detected in wireless home network communications, and therefore a competing links are subject to a further refinement identified as Collision Avoidance, in one form of which a link sends a request over the wireless medium which only elevates to actual data transmission if clearance to send is received from the target device. Thus the contention based protocol for wireless home networks is identified as Collision Sense Multiple Access/Collision Avoidance (CSMA/CA).
What is needed is a WAP with improved capability for forming a home network with multiple competing devices.